Cagewriter

Jon Jones hopes Anderson Silva stays out of Octagon

Ever since the long-reigning UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva lost his second consecutive fight to Chris Weidman and suffered a nasty broken leg at UFC 168 last December, nearly everyone in the MMA world has chimed in with their opinions on whether "The Spider" should attempt a come back. UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones was recently asked what he thought about the prospect of Silva attempting to return to action, as he has repeatedly promised to do, and as UFC president Dana White has also expressed hope for.

"I’m hoping that Anderson just stays away from the sport and continues to be an inspiration outside of the Octagon," Jones said during a recent radio interview with Lavar Arrington and Chad Dukes of 106.7-FM The Fan in Washington D.C.

“It was just sad. I know how long Anderson Silva’s been working to be who he is,” Jones said.

“I’ve won several [UFC title bouts]. This guy’s won 12 or 13. That’s a lot of work. So to see such a magnificent career and legacy get tarnished by two losses, two kind of flukish losses – I wouldn’t call the first one a fluke - he was playing around, but a left hook is a left hook – it sucks. It leaves a weird taste in your mouth – it’s not supposed to end that way. What I’m hoping is that people remember Anderson for all the magnificent things he’s done, all the lives he’s touched, all the people he’s inspired and...not fight again. Anderson can do seminars, he can do motivational speaking, he can help all the kids in Brazil. I mean, he’s such an idol. His greatness has just begun. But I think in the octagon, I think it’s been already fun.”

Do you agree with Jones that Silva should never fight again after two consecutive stoppage losses? Or, do you think "Bones" is premature in his assessment?